Do you believe fracking in the UK will bring lower consumer energy costs?

lstar337

PollySouthend wrote: »

What you do have is a I'm right, I know more, no one can question me attitude.

Preferable over a "I'm right, I know nothing about a subject, but I'm still right and nobody will tell me otherwise" attitude.

PollySouthend wrote: »

Anyone that thinks they know it all and know it better than everyone else that doesn't share their viewpoint, is someone I take with a pinch of salt. "I have a degree in rocks so shut up I know more than you and all your concerns are dogs..."

So if somebody with a degree in blenders tells you not to put your hand inside and turn it on, YOU can take that with a pinch of salt. Afterall, YOU know better than somebody who has studied a subject for a significant part of their life, YOU have your gut feeling to go on, and that trumps any actual knowledge.

You really are a special case Polly.

Branch out on what you are reading on the internet, move away from your staple 'tin foil hat' sites, and read some balanced material on the subject.

lstar337

C_Mababejive wrote: »

The only way YOUR fuel bill will go down is by YOU and YOUR family being more conservative and effective in fuel useage.

You make an excellent point, but even that wont help!

BBC NEWS - Households in England and Wales cut their energy use by a quarter over a six year period.

Average consumption of gas and electricity fell by 24.7% between 2005 and 2011.

But wait...

The regulator, Ofgem, said that bills have risen by 28% in the last three years.

So we drop our usage to lower our bills, and the utility companies raise prices to protect their bottom line.

sheffield_lad

lstar337 wrote: »

You make an excellent point, but even that wont help!

BBC NEWS - Households in England and Wales cut their energy use by a quarter over a six year period.

But wait...

So we drop our usage to lower our bills, and the utility companies raise prices to protect their bottom line.

You have to put the price into perspective we are no more expensive than the majority of Europe. Bothe France & Germany pay more for their fuel.

Andy_WSM

sheffield_lad wrote: »

Both France & Germany pay more for their fuel.

But plenty of places are cheaper. Just because we live in "rip off Britain" doesn't mean we have to pay more for everything. If the utility companies are making absurd profits then this should be stopped and the savings past back to the consumer. Lets face it, I can choose whether to go out for a meal, go to the Cinema etc, but I can't really choose whether or not to have heat in at least one room at home or to keep the freezer plugged in.

PollySouthend

sheffield_lad wrote: »

I am with you on debt and deficit. What I am suggesting is imagine how bad it would have been without north sea revenue?

Where else do you think the money has gone? The public sector pensions, old age pension, NHS, schools, not forgetting behind Germany we have been the biggest contributor to the EU!

Without the North sea we would have been 20yrs or so behind ( AKA Spain), with new infrastructure being built with more money from Germany and a few others.

Where ever the money has gone, I doubt it has benefited the average person much.

Don't think we would be like Spain at all. Spain is in its situation I think due only relatively recently coming out of a dictatorship. Don't they export alot?

lstar337

sheffield_lad wrote: »

You have to put the price into perspective we are no more expensive than the majority of Europe. Bothe France & Germany pay more for their fuel.

I never said we were.

The point is, they tell us to lower consumption to save on bills, then raise the bills when we do.

Plus, it is not as simple as "we are cheaper than Europe" which people keep throwing around.

We are not Europe, so it is pointless to compare.

Personally, I am bored of the utilities telling us to lower consumption. Some of us would find it extremely difficult to lower our consumption further, myself included.

I have put a lot of effort into reducing our (Me, my OH, our daughter) consumption,

• All lights are low energy (4 8W CFL's, 2 3W LED, and 2 5 foot fluorescents 58W which I have just converted to T5 bulbs with electronic ballasts 32W.
• Only 2 devices are ever left in standby (2 PVR's which have a >1W standby rating.
• Low energy appliances (Fridge A+, Tumble only used at night E7, washing machine only uses cold water as it has no heater internally or hot fill).
• No computer. Portable devices charged on E7.

We are using ~4 units per day (ignoring heating), feel free to point out where we can further trim the fat.

sheffield_lad

lstar337 wrote: »

I never said we were.

The reason for your bills going up though has very little to do with profit (roughly 5%), of the cost of your gas/electric.

It's facts like we are now an importer of gas and the whole world now wants cheap fuel.

Look at India, currently 50% of houses do not have electricity, but for how much longer? We as a nation need to expect to pay more as the era of cheap fuel (bar fracking), is over with.

Consider the uk average bill for gas/leccy £120 per month now think about the cost of the digital age (sky, mobile, b/band), there is little in it yet £120 keeps you warm and runs the above.

Is it expensive or fair value when you consider other costs?

sheffield_lad

Andy_WSM wrote: »

But plenty of places are cheaper. Just because we live in "rip off Britain" doesn't mean we have to pay more for everything. If the utility companies are making absurd profits then this should be stopped and the savings past back to the consumer. Lets face it, I can choose whether to go out for a meal, go to the Cinema etc, but I can't really choose whether or not to have heat in at least one room at home or to keep the freezer plugged in.

There are actually fewer places with cheaper fuel that's my point you don't live in 'rip off Britain' most utilities make around 5% profit.

Do you consider £120 a month expensive (UK average), to heat your home keep the lights on?

What does your bb/mob/sky add up to as you can reduce these?

sheffield_lad

sheffield_lad

PollySouthend wrote: »

Where ever the money has gone, I doubt it has benefited the average person much.

Don't think we would be like Spain at all. Spain is in its situation I think due only relatively recently coming out of a dictatorship. Don't they export alot?

You need to think about the schools, hospitals, roads etc built since the 1960's most if not all were covered by the North sea gas/oil.